Planooraptl



W. J. DRAY.

GRATE CLEANING DEVICE.

APPLICATION men JULY 29, 1910.

1,318,852. I Patented 0ct'.14,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Tm: COLUMBIA runounum 0)., WASHINGTON, n. :4

W. J. DRAY.

GRATE CLEANING DEVICE.

APPLICATION nuzn JULY 29. 1918.

1,318,852. Patented Oct. 14,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WILLIAM JAMES DRAY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

GRATE-CLEANING DEVICE,

Specification of Letters Patent. Pate t d 091; 14 19 1 9;

Application filed July 29,1918. Serial No. 247,217. v

To all whom it may concern r Be it known that I, WILLIAM JAMES DRAY, a subject of Great Britain, and a resident of the borough of Manhattan, in the county, city, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Grate-Cleaning Devices, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention relates generally to means for cleaning grates in coal-burning apparatuses, and it more especially appertains to mechanical appliances for removing ashes, clinkers and other refuse, from the stationary grate-bars in marine boiler furnaces. v V

One of the objects of the invention is to produce animproved appliance of the nature set forth that can be readily applied to existing furnaces, as well as put into new ones, and in either case may be depend ed on to keep the fires bright by opportunely liberating the grates from an undue accumulation of ashes, such as would cause thereon harmful aggregations andincrustations.

Another object is the production of an effective appliance of the type mentioned which shall be simple to operate and capable of being actuated with a moderate effort, tending to preserve both the health and strength of the furnace attendants by reli ev ing them of the arduous task of wielding the slow and ponderous hand-operated cleaning implements which they have heretofore been accustomed to manipulate,

A further object is to provide an openly designed appliance of the character described which shall insure perfect combus 7 tion of the fuel burning upon the grate of the furnace, thereby economizlng on the quantity of coal used, as also on the labor required in thehandling thereof, and mean- 1 while remaining in a relatively cool condition, due to its exposure to air currents passing under the grate. 7

Still another object is the provision of a strong and durable appliance of the kind I specified, which shall be comparatively lowpriced, inexpensive to install, composed of. few parts, not liable to get out of order,

and easily renovated in such portion thereof as may eventually :be in need of renewal or repairs.

single appliance will suflice to clean a plu- 7 .is, the so-called' Scot ch A still further object is so to apply the invention to its; intended purpose: thatxa' rality of grates, the latter being acted upon conjointly; and simultaneously.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the specifi-. cation proceeds. r With the aforesaid objects in view, the lnvention consists of the novel combinations and arrangements of parts hereinaf. ter described in their preferred embodiments, pointed out in the subjoined claims, and illustrated on the annexed drawings, wherein like parts are designated by the same reference characters throughout the several views. Y

In the said drawings:

Figure .I is a top plan view of a cleaning device constructed in accordance with the present invention, as applied to plural grates of a marine boiler, a portion of the latter and its furnace appearingzin section, and certain parts being omitted; r

Fig. II isa. side elevation of the appliance, with the boiler and furnace in section similarly to the preceding view, parts being broken away; and

Fig; III is a front end elevation of thesame form of the. appliance as'is represented in Figs. I and II, with the shell of the boiler, furnace flue, and grate-bars in section. .7

In these views, the reference character A denotes a corrugated furnace flue, of a type commonly used for boilers, around which is a front head B, and an outer shell C At'the rear end of the flue A stands a bridge wall D, and at the front'end is a dead'plate'E, laid horizontally within an extension F, of the furnace. Grates, composed each of a number of parallel bars G, are placed end to end in a longitudinal series diametrically within the flue, and are sup- [ported in horizontal position therein by means of transverse carriers being received the carriers H, but theyformed with heads, as G, at'the ends to keep them spaced the proper distance apart adjacent to one another. The several parts here enumerated are ordinarily found in the standard marine steam-generator, that p marine boiler; V Below the gratesG, onfopposite' sides of of, is'located an open trackway 1, which thefflneAiand partofitheextension F -theremay consist of a pair of rails extending approximately the full length of the flue and secured to the bottom portion of the latter by means of lugs 2. The tread of each rail will be preferably rounded to prevent lodgment thereon of ashes dropping down through the interstices of the grates thereabove.

Upon the track 1 is mounted a truck made of a length somewhat exceeding that of one of the grates G and comprising flanged or grooved wheels 3 and 1, that are arranged in pairs forward and rearward respectively, and are adapted to roll along the said rails a suflicient distance to run under the plural grates in succession, alternately advancing or retreating with relation to the same. The paired wheels are journaled upon opposite ends 3 and 1 of cross-bars 5 and 6, which are tied together by means of distance pieces 7, and form therewith an open quadrilateral truck frame.

Attached to the cross-bars 5 and 6 of the said frame are raking elements 10, arranged in transverse rows at the opposite ends of the frame, one row being located on each side of the middle carriers H that support the adjacent inner extremities of the pair or plurality of grates G. The elements 10 are in the nature of elongated teeth, which are made to project upwardly between the several bars composing the grates, and to follow closely the sides of the bars without touching the same, when the truck is moved back and forth upon the pair of rails thereunder. Thus positioned, the forward and rearward rows of toothed elements 10 form together with the truck frame a double rake, which is inverted and in permanent engagement with some part of each grate. It is understood that the upper ends of these raking elements, which extend upwardly above the surface of each grate-bar, will 11.- stantly loosen the ashes therefrom and cause them to fall to the bottom of the flue A, constituting the ash-pit of the furnace. By occasionally reciprocating the rake along the grates, the ashes and hot cinders will not have time to fuse and no clinkers will be formed. The reciprocation of the rake, it will be noted, operates to clean the pair or plurality of grates simultaneously. As the grates extend laterally beyond the opposite sides of the truck frame, owing to the circular configuration of the flue A, the outermost raking elements 10 are not attached directly to the cross-bars 5 and 6, but are carried instead by straps 11, fastened to the nearest elements 10' in their respective rows and extending outwardly past the rails 1 to the adjoining side walls of the flue.

The drawings hereto annexed illustrate one of the several' ways in which the rake aforesaid'can be reciprocated under the plural grates G to relieve lthemyof ashes and the like. In Figs. I, II and III, the means for moving the rake is shown as consisting of chains 14 and 15, respectively attached to the cross-bars 5 and 6 of the truck or frame. The upper forward chain 14: winds around a wide-faced spool 16, to which it is fastened by one end, the other end thereof being secured to the front bar 5. The chain 15, connected at one end to the rear bar 6, runs over a sheave 17 and thence toward the front, where its other end is anchored to the spool 16, but in a direction opposite to that of the first-named chain. The spool 16 and sheave 17 are mounted on shafts 18 and 19, journaled in the front and rear ends of the rails 1, respectively.

Upon the near end of the forward shaft 18, as viewed in Figs. I and II, is fastened a worm-gear 22, with which a worm 23 has meshing engagement. The latter is driven by a forwardly-projecting spindle 25, fitted in suitable bearings provided therefor in a bracket 24:, secured exteriorly upon the furnace extension F. This bracket also affords a bearing for the outboard portion of the shaft 18, as best seen in Fig. III. The spindle 25 can be easily rotated by means of a crank 26, provided for its manual op eration. Obviously, however, the same spindle may have its motive force applied thereto from an auxiliary engine or motor. As will be readily perceived, when the worm 23 is turned in one direction, the gear 22 causes the spool 16 to win-d upv the chain 1A and draw the truck forward, while at the same time it lets out the chain 15. Re versely, the chain 15 will wind around the spool, and the chain 16 bepaid out, in which case the truck is pulled rearward. The gearing is such that it will maintain the thereto related parts in any given position. to this arrangement, the truck and toothed elements constituting the double rake may be stationed anywhere under and along the plural grates, whether intentionally or otherwise, and can be relied on to perform thoroughly the grate cleaning operation, whenever called into use.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the rake is effectively reciprocated to clean the plurality of grates, whenever the spindle 25 is rotated, either manually with the aid of the crank 26, or mechanically through the medium of some suitable power connec t-ion. The rotation of the spindle 25 sets in motion the worm 2-3 that meshes with the worm-gear 22, and the latter in turn revolves the shaft 18. The spool 16 carried by this. shaft, will transmit the movement to the combined truck and rake, the spool alternately winding and unwinding the chains 14 and 15, which serve to move the truck and rake back and forth in the manner already pointed out. It is understood, of

course, that the spindle 25 is rotated in one Due direction to pull the truck and rake forward, and in the opposite direction to draw the same rearward.

While a certain preferred embodiment of this device has been shown and described, it will be understood that changes in the form, arrangements, proportions and details thereof may be made,

by theappended clalms.

Having described my invention What I desire I to secure by Letters Patent and claim, is I 1. A cleaning appliance for-a grate, including. a s'lidable rake normally engaged with the latter, a wheeled truck supported,

to roll beneathsaid grate in position to carry said rake,.and means including a gear locked chain drive for temporarily setting said truck in any. chosen position.

' 2. The combination with a plurality [of grates sequentially arranged in a longitudinal direction, of a reciprocable wheeled truck of greater length than either one. of

I said grates, raking elements projecting between individual bars of each grate from the ends of said truck, and:chains attached to said ends for reciprocating the truck with I said elements.

3. The combination with plural grates and supporting means therefor transversely arranged at their adjoining extremities, of a wheeled truck carrying substantially parallel series of raking elements respectively locatedon opposite sides of said supthe ends of said truck for drawing it with said rows of elements back and forth together, each'through its respective. grate, and a drum adapted alternately to wind one and unwind the other of said chains.

5. The combination with a grate, of an inverted rake normally engagingthe same, a wheeled truck carryingsaid rake, rotatable elements ineluding a drum and a sheave located respect1vely:forward and rearward Copies of this patentmaylbe obtained for Without departi from the scopeof the invention-a d fi d b to wind and unwind the chains by of said grate at opposite ends thereof, flexible connections attachedto said truck and r said drum, one of said connections passing over said sheave, and means for setting the drum in rotation.

6. 'The combination with a grate, of a vehicular frame thereunder, toothed elements projecting in substantially parallel lines etween bars of saidgrate from said frame, oppositely adapted alternately to exert a drawing acdisposed flexible connections tion upon the frame endwise thereof, and

rotatable members over which said connec tlons are passed, one of sa d members serving as an idler for one connection, theother member havingboth connections attached thereto so as to wind and unwind the same in opposite directions.

7. The combination with a grate, of a rake;

engaging the same from the under side thereof, a'wheeled truck carrying said rake,

chains attached to the ends of said truck adapted to reciprocate the rake forward and rearward" in a longitudinal direction, a drum 'to which the opposite ends ofsaid chains are anchored soas to be alternately wound and unwound thereon, and gearing connected with said to said grate at any desired point therealong.

8. The combination with a grate, of

raking device movable thereunder, chains attached to the ends of, said device, a drum arranged to wind and unwind said chains, a gear capable'of actuating said drum alternately in opposite directions, and a worm in engagement with said gear adapted to operate the drum so as to cause the chains to move the device and subsequently hold it.

in a predetermined position.

drum serving to staythe truck with the rake relatively 9. The combination with a plurality of i grates placed in sequence in a longitudinal direction, a trackway laid thereunder, a' vehicular frame mounted so as to roll along said traekway, toothed elements carried by said frame in permanent engagement with bars of said grates, chains attachedto the ends of the frame, a drum and a sheave over which said chains are passed, shafts for the latter namedparts carried by the opposite extremities of the trackway, and gearing located to one side thereof adapted naterotation of the drum in opposite directions. 1

' {manna JAMEs DiaAY'.

alter V five cents each, by'addressingthe Commissioner of I atents, Washington, D. 0'. 7 1 

